Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Last week, when I
wrote about circle stories, I included my own book, No Monkeys, No Chocolate, in my list of sample titles. Believe it
or not, the idea that the book featured a circular structure was a revelation.
Honestly, it never occurred to me until a Kirkus
reviewer called it a “clever circle story” in his/her starred review.

The whole time I was working
on the book I classified it as a cumulative story, a la The House that Jack
Built, in my mind. I worked hard to make each step in the process as clear and
engaging as possible.

Basically, I thought
of the whole book in terms of conceptual scaffolding—carefully assembling a
series of building blocks, one spread at a time, with the overall goal of
convincing readers that the title was, indeed, true—if there were no monkeys in
the world, our favorite dessert would disappear, too. Poof!

I worked so hard to
carry readers along on a voyage of discovery from the provocative title to
(what I hoped was) a satisfying pay off at the end that I never realized the
book starts and ends in the same place—with cocoa beans.

There are lots of
other great nonfiction books that make good use of a cumulative structure. Here
are some of my favorites.

Monday, October 28, 2013

Let’s focus on yet another kindergarten PE that is lumped under Earth
& Space Science, though it really has significant overlap with life science
concepts. This week, my suggestions are related to land environments. Next
week, I’ll look at water environments.

K-ESS3-3.Communicate and discuss solutions that will
reduce the impact of humans on the land, water, air, and/or other living things
in the local environment.

Here are some books that would be perfect for
addressing this concept:

Where Once There Was a Wood by Denise Flemming

A Place for Butterflies by Melissa Stewart

The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry

Dumpster Diver
by Janet S. Wong

No Monkeys, No Chocolate by Melissa Stewart

Finding Home by Sandra Markle

Discussion

Young children can
often see and evaluate the actions of others, but they may have trouble
understanding the impact of their own behaviors. And yet, they need that awareness
before they can get involved in meaningful conservation. To help students
develop their thinking in this direction, encourage them to discuss how they
might be harming the environment without even realizing it. They can use
some examples from A Place for
Butterflies as thought starters. Then encourage students to suggest ways they
might change their behavior to help protect animals and preserve natural
environments in your community.

Activity

Invite students to pretend they are the butterfly
in Where Once There Was a Wood or one of the butterflies in the Great Kapok tree’s tropical rain forest home. Ask the
children to describe what it feels like to flit through the air. Then ask what
they wish people would do to help them live and grow. Consider recording a few
children’s responses with the video setting on a digital camera. The videos can
be replayed later on your SmartBoard.

Friday, October 25, 2013

On hot days, your body keeps cool by cranking
out a steady supply of clear, salty sweat. As the sweat evaporates, or turns
into a gas and rises into the air, the heat on your skin goes along for the
ride.

But a turkey vulture can’t make sweat. So it
stays cool by peeing on its legs. As the urine evaporates, body heat escapes
through the scales on the bird’s legs. What a great trick!

For
more gross facts about our animal neighbors, check out Animal Grossapedia. But
be sure not to read it right after lunch!

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

I’ve been thinking a
lot about nonfiction text structures lately. I spoke about it at the New
England Reading Association conference in Portland, Maine, in September, and
I’ll be part of a panel discussing this topic at NCTE in Boston in November.

As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, CCSS directly mentions four different nonfiction text structures, but
there are others that are worth thinking about. One of my favorites is a circle
story, which is a great structure for students to use in their own writing.

In a circle story,
the reader begins and ends at the same place, which is very satisfying.

Monday, October 21, 2013

Today is the most beautiful autumn day I've ever seen, so I had to take a picture. The foliage is at its height in our front yard, and look at that gorgeous blue sky. You can also spot the GIANT pumpkin my husband scored on Saturday.

Expanding
on the post from October 7, here are some books and activities that focus
specifically on one aspect of K-ESS2-1—the role
humans can play in altering an environment, either accidentally or on purpose,
sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse.

Work with your class
to make a helpful change to the environment around your school by planting a
wildlife garden. Encourage the students to watch the garden closely to see if it attracts insects,
birds, and other animals.

Activity 2

This
activity builds on Activity 2 for the PE’s sister lesson. (See my Oct. 7 post.)
Ask students to observe a tree in the schoolyard, around their neighborhood, or
at a local park at least three times over a few days. Then ask them to draw two
pictures. The first drawing should show at least one way the tree makes life
better for one or more animals that live in the same environment. The second
drawing should show how the animal(s) would be affected if people cut down the
tree.

When
students have finish their drawings, ask them what they think would happen if
another person planted a new tree. How long do they think it would take for
those changes to happen?

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Some people think violets are weeds and yank them out of their gardens. But violets are my favorite flowers. I love their deep purple color, and I love how they fearlessly pop their little flowerheads out in early spring. To me, they are a sign of hope and new beginnings. So my heart leapt up when I spotted this hardy survivor in my yard yesterday. Some people might shake their heads at this violet and think it's confused, but to me, it's a small miracle.

Monday, October 7, 2013

This week, I’m focusing on another kindergarten PE that is lumped under
Earth & Space Science, though it really has significant overlap with life
science concepts.

K-ESS2-1. Construct
an argument supported by evidence for how plants and
animals (including humans) can change the environment to meet their
needs.[Clarification
Statement: Examples of plants and animals changing their environment could
include a squirrel digs in the ground to hide its food and tree roots can break
concrete.]

Here are some books that would be perfect for
addressing how animals can change an environment.

Mole’s Hill by Lois Elhert

At Home with Gopher Tortoise by Madeleine Dunphy

Turtle's
Race with Beaver by Joseph and James Bruchac

Who
Lives in an Alligator Hole?
by Anne Rockwell

Wiggling Worms at Work by Wendy
Pfeffer

Activity 1

Encourage your
students to create a comparison mural that shows the ways animals in two of the
books listed above changed their environment. For example, the fictional
character Mole in Mole’s Hill and the gopher tortoise featured in At Home with Gopher Tortoise both dig
underground. Why does each animal dig tunnels and how does that affect the
creatures that live in the area?

It’s
hard to find books that show how plants can change their environment, but this
activity will do the trick:

Activity 2

Ask
students to observe a tree in the schoolyard, around their neighborhood, or at
a local park at least three times over a few days. Then ask them to draw a
picture that shows at least one way the tree makes life better for one or more
animals that live in the same environment.

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Last week, I questioned
the methodology of a recent study that makes this bold claim: “Stories are
about 22 times more memorable than facts alone.

I’ve been giving the
study more thought and I’ve decided that the researchers, Arya & Maul,
should do more than just choose their texts more carefully. They should also
test subjects at a variety of grade levels.

The 2012 study
included 209 students in grades 7 and 8. I think they should also look at
students in grades 3 and 4.

What I’ve seen
firsthand and heard echoed by educators is that, generally speaking, nonfiction
seems to be a more popular choice among elementary readers than middle grade
readers. And we all know that the most popular nonfiction at, let’s say, grades
2-4 are fact-filled, browse-able titles like TheGuinness Book of World
Records.

I strongly believe
that elementary-aged children gravitate toward facts because it’s their “job”
to understand the world. On the other hand, tweens and teens are in a different
place developmentally. It is there “job” to find their own placer in the world.
Given this, it would make a lot of sense for them to gravitate toward narrative
nonfiction and fiction.

But here’s what I
think it really comes down to. Every kid is different, so I think it’s critical
to expose all children to a wide range of texts and see what works best for
each individual.

As I clearly state in
this post last February, I’m
not claiming that story never works. I’m saying that it doesn’t always work.
There’s no single, easy answer.

Sure, narratives can
be a powerful way to present ideas and information. But expository text can be
just as powerful. We need both.

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About Me

Melissa Stewart is the award-winning author of more than 180 nonfiction books for children. Her lifelong fascination with the natural world led her to earn a B.S.
in biology and M.A. in science journalism. When Melissa isn’t writing or speaking to children or educators, she’s usually exploring natural places near her home or around the world.